The influence of the sun on global warming has already been estimated

It is a fact that fluctuations in solar activity have an effect on the Earth’s climate, according to a study by Swiss researchers, who for the first time have been able to estimate the influence of the sun on the warming of planet Earth.

Although it has long been known that the oscillations of the solar activity modify the intensity of the radiation that arrives at the Earth, to determine if these variations have or not measurable influence in the climate constitutes a challenge and a central question in the climatic investigation. These experts who participated in the study, relied on mathematical models to establish a consistent estimate of the influence of the sun on the planet’s temperature over the next 100 years.

The researchers hypothesized that the sun’s rays arriving at the planet, cause variations more relevant than those recognized in previous models until then. This is the argument that this is the only explanation for natural climate change in the last few millennia.

During this study, funded by the Swiss National Fund, scientists have discovered that after a phase of high solar intensity since the 1950s, the activity of the sun will decrease. The researchers also predict that although the star’s weakest radiation may contribute to a drop-in temperature, this effect will not compensate for global warming due to human activities, which are responsible for a nearly one degree centigrade increase in global temperature with the numbers registered in pre-industrial times).

Werner Schmutz, director of the Davos Physical and Meteorological Observatory in Switzerland, said the discovery of this decline in solar activity is “important” and “can help tackle the consequences of climate change”.

“We can gain precious time if the activity of the sun decreases and if the earth’s temperature rises slightly,” said Werner Schmutz, adding that this situation will be fleeting since, “after a minimum solar activity, there is always a maximum”, he added.

Scientists also point out that “it is always complicated” to predict how the next cycle of the sun will affect the Earth, due to the impossibility of accessing all data on solar activity or ground temperature.